


from brussels, with love

by LiveLaughLovex



Series: to love (and to be loved) [6]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Established Relationship, F/M, Spoilers for Season/Series 01
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-02
Updated: 2019-01-02
Packaged: 2019-10-02 16:43:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,944
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17267699
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LiveLaughLovex/pseuds/LiveLaughLovex
Summary: Several months after proposing, Steve takes Kono to visit those cobblestone streets she's always loved but never seen.





	from brussels, with love

**Author's Note:**

> I was recently rewatching the first season of the show, as it is the only season that I'm following even halfway in this series and I am trying to write little scenes before/after/during each of the episodes to be included at a later date. While doing that, I saw the scene in the eleventh episode where Chin and Kono are discussing honeymoon destinations while working the case involving the murder of a newlywed. In that episode, Kono mentioned she likes cobblestone. Somehow, that one line resulted in over four thousand words of fic. I don't understand me, either.

“How exactly did Freddie end up breaking his ankle, again?” Kono asked her fiancé one night in late March. They were in the middle of their daily conversation, a tradition they’d been doing their best to uphold since separating in Busan at the start of January, and their efforts had been quite successful, so far.

“He was playing soccer with some of the village kids,” Steve explained. “He ended up kicking the ball too hard, causing him to fall on his face.” He smirked at the sound of her laughter. “Yeah. He’s probably the most uncoordinated SEAL in our history. The kids were cool about it, though. They all followed us to the medical tent and refused to leave until the doc came out and promised them that Freddie was going to be okay.”

“That’s just about the cutest thing I’ve heard all day,” Kono sighed. “Tell Freddie I hope he feels better soon. Broken ankles are the worst.” She paused. “Well, I think they are. I broke mine when I was six. I don’t actually remember much about it.”

“You do realize that was only twenty years ago, right?” Steve pointed out amusedly.

“Hey, don’t blame the memory loss on me. According to the doctors, I hit my head pretty hard when I went down last year,” Kono reminded him. “Those waves literally hit me enough to knock the sense right out of me.”

“As funny as that would be in any other situation, I don’t think I’m ever going to feel anything other than dread when your accident is brought up,” Steve informed her seriously. “I don’t think there’s anything in this world worse than knowing someone you love is hurting on the other side of the world and not being able to get to them.”

“Oh, believe me, honey, I know,” Kono replied dryly. “I’ve had to learn that first-hand several times since we met on that beach in South Korea back in ’04.”

“You do know I can’t actually just dodge the bullets when they’re coming at me from all directions, don’t you? If I could, I would. If only so I could prevent you from worrying and stop Freddie from lecturing me on proper battlefield behavior.”

“And what is ‘proper battlefield behavior,’ according to Lieutenant Hart?” Kono asked amusedly, not sure she was prepared for the answer. The things Freddie came up with – she was entirely certain no other human being had ever so much as considered most of them.

“I don’t actually know,” Steve admitted. “I’m pretty sure it just has to do with not getting shot and bleeding all over his cleanest fatigues, honestly. That’s all I ever really hear about when I, you know, get shot and bleed all over his cleanest fatigues, at least.”

“You know how I know you two have a true friendship? He knows you’re going to bleed on his clean fatigues, and yet he still carries you off the battlefield. It’s very sweet, in a strange and possibly macabre way.” Kono smiled when Steve simply laughed at that. “By the way, Mary Ann called me again today.”

“Oh, yeah?” Steve asked curiously. “What did she want? Did she ever actually say?”

Kono couldn’t help but smirk at that. She loved her future sister-in-law, but even she had to admit that the woman wasn’t always the best at staying on topic over the phone, especially when there were more than a few subjects she felt the need to cover. Of course, there were always multiple subjects to be covered, so she often worked against herself on the conversation front.

“She did, actually. Be nice to your sister,” Kono reprimanded playfully. “She wants to know about the wedding. I told her we hadn’t planned much,” she rushed to assure him when he exhaled heavily, “and that we’re not sure about a timeline. She just wants to make sure she’ll be able to get the time off.”

“It’s not that I don’t want to plan anything,” Steve tried to explain. Fortunately for him, he didn’t need to. Kono knew him well enough to hear what he wasn’t saying. “It’s just that –”

“Babe, you don’t really need to explain to me why, at the moment, your priority is on survival, not silverware,” she assured him. “We’ll figure it out when we figure it out. We don’t need to stick to the schedules of other people. We’ll get there on our own, all right?”

“Yeah,” Steve replied gratefully. “We will.”

“So,” Kono began, changing the subject, “how’s your week been?”

“Well, other than the whole ankle fiasco, pretty calm,” Steve reported. “We’re not in an active combat zone like we usually are, which is nice. Gives the guys a chance to breathe for once, you know?”

“Yeah,” Kono nodded in agreement, ignoring that he couldn’t see the movement. “A chance for you to breathe, too.”

“Well, I’m not that worried about myself,” Steve replied slowly.

“Of course, you’re not,” Kono sighed affectionately. “Why would you be? That’s just a sign of self-preservation, and you’ve never once showed any evidence of having even an inkling of that.”

“You’re starting to sound like Freddie,” he warned her lightheartedly.

“Eh. Worse people to sound like,” Kono shrugged, waving the playful accusation away. She held the phone away for a moment to muffle a yawn with her hand.

Steve, of course, still heard. “That’s the third time you’ve yawned since you picked up,” he informed her worriedly. “I’m not keeping you up, am I? Do I need to let you go so you can sleep?”

“No, no, I’m fine,” Kono rushed to assure him. “I watched Maia for Seth and Bridget today, that’s all. The kid’s energy comes in spades, I swear. I don’t have to be anywhere tomorrow until, like, two. You’re not keeping me from anything. Please, keep talking. What else is going on around there?”

“Not much,” Steve admitted after a few seconds of consideration. “One of the guys’ wives had a baby a few days ago. Little girl. That’s about it.”

“Oh, yeah? Well, what’d they name her?” Kono asked curiously.

“Eleanor. It was his mom’s name,” Steve explained.  “Oh, wait. Something else happened. I can’t believe I forgot about it, honestly.”

“What’s that?”

“We’re only here for a few more days. After that, the captain’s giving us a couple weeks off,” Steve told her. “I was wondering if you’d want to spend a week or two in Europe with me. I was going to suggest Busan at first, but, well, I know how much you like cobblestones.”

“I do really like cobblestones, you’re right,” Kono agreed. “And I would love to see them with you.”

“Really?” Steve asked hopefully.

“Yes, really,” Kono laughed. “What, did you think you were going to make an offer like that, tell me I’d get to see you and cobblestones, and I was going to turn you down? My training doesn’t start until the end of April, and that’s literally the only other thing I’ve got going on. You just tell me when and where, and I’ll meet you there with bells on. Well, not literally. But you get the point.”

“I do,” Steve assured her amusedly, having long since grown used to the tangents she’d occasionally go off on in the middle of an otherwise normal conversation. “How about Brussels?” he suggested. “You like Brussels?”

“I’ve never been to Brussels,” Kono pointed out. “But the screensaver pictures I’ve seen are – they’re lovely, so, sure. Let’s go to Brussels, _sailor_.” She tacked on the last word for two reasons – because it annoyed him, being referenced as such, and also because she could.

“You’re never going to just let that one go, are you?” Steve sighed fondly. “Fine. I’ll let you win this round. See you in Brussels, _Princess_.”

“Oh, no,” Kono replied, shaking her head. “Nope. Going to go ahead and nip that one right in the bud. Do not call me princess. Not if you like your face the way it is.”

“See, I don’t think you’d follow through on that threat, because I know for a fact that you like my face the way that it is.” She could practically hear the amused smugness emanating from him, even over a distance of several thousand miles.

“Yeah, well, I’m just glad you’re too far away right now for me to have to make a hard call.” Kono smiled, shaking her head fondly at the sound of his laughter. “I cannot _believe_ I’m marrying you,” she tacked on teasingly.

 “Yeah,” Steve replied, his tone slightly reverent. “I can’t really believe it, either.”

-o-o-o-o-o-

 

He met her at the airport in Brussels one week later, a bouquet of flowers in his left hand and a smile brighter than she’d ever seen on his face. He was dressed casually, clad in one of the many flannel shirts she’d sent to him over the years and jeans, and the bungee-cord bracelet he’d received from her nieces for Christmas was on his wrist. He placed the flowers on the ground next to him, almost as if he could predict her next actions. Then again, they’d had this moment with one another enough times at that point that he likely could, and it was much better for them both that no thorns were still in his grasp when she launched herself into his embrace.

 He was such a sight for sore eyes that she almost sobbed at the sight of him, and when she was finally in his arms and being lifted into the air, right there in front of everybody for God and the rest of the world to see, she did let two tears slip, unchecked, down cheeks already sore from smiling.

“Hi,” he murmured after finally pulling away. He held her face between his hands, wiping away the wetness on her cheeks with his thumbs, and then pressed his lips reverently to hers, as if he was scared she might suddenly be taken from him. Then again, with their history, she couldn’t exactly blame him.

She only pulled away when it was necessary for survival, seeing as she was no longer able to breathe at that point. “Wow,” she murmured, her hand still resting against his chest. “I hate the periods where we don’t see together, but if they all end like that, well.”

He beamed down at her. “I missed you,” he said, as if that was all the explanation she needed. In all honesty, it was. “Spending three months away from you is not my idea of a good time, Kono.”

“Well, that’s good, because otherwise this marriage would be doomed from the start,” she retorted jokingly, her hand finding his to intertwine their fingers.

Steve smiled at that. “Marriage,” he repeated quietly. “I like the sound of that. Oh. By the way.” He bent slightly to scoop the flowers from the ground and extend them in her direction. “These are for you.”

“Thank you,” she murmured, accepting them with her free hand and flashing him the shy smile she could never seem to rid herself of when in his presence. “They’re beautiful,” she added after a moment, burying her nose in the bouquet.

“You’re beautiful,” Steve returned readily, honestly. “How was the flight?”

“Well, the baby behind me didn’t cry,” she replied cheerfully. “Not once. So, you know, it was pretty nice. How about yours? You got in six hours ago, didn’t you?”

Steve nodded before assuring her, “It was fine. Bit bumpy there at the beginning, but that’s just normal, at this point. You check your bags?”

“I did,” she replied, allowing herself to be led in the direction of the luggage carousel. “Did you fly out of South Korea or Afghanistan?” she asked curiously. “I mean, not that it’s important,” she clarified quickly, shrugging when he shot her a bemused look. “I was just wondering why turbulence would be normal.”

“I flew into Landstuhl from Afghanistan,” he answered after a moment. “Got on a connecting flight at the airport to make it here. There weren’t any issues with the plane or anything; flights out of war zones just tend to be rougher, that’s all.”

“Yeah,” Kono agreed. “That makes sense, what with all the, you know, guns and violence that can be found in literally every war zone.” She smirked up at him, then nodded to two bags on the carousel as they made their way past. “Those are mine.”

“Those two?” Steve checked, nodding to them himself as he released her hand.

“Yeah,” Kono confirmed, stepping forward to grab them and then shaking her head exasperatedly when her fiancé beat her to it. “I can carry them myself, you know,” she sighed amusedly. “They’re not heavy at all. I didn’t fill them with rocks or anything like that.”

“I know you can carry them,” Steve assured her as he picked them up and stepped away. “Plus, you know, you’ve already got your hands full with the flowers.”

“Oh, so the flowers were part of your plan, huh?” she teased, following him through the airport.

“The flowers are tradition,” he corrected. “If they keep you from carrying your own bags, well.” He shrugged. “That’s just an unseen bonus. My mother did not raise me to have no manners, babe. I’m not making you carry your own bags through this place.”

“You’re the weirdest, sweetest man I’ve ever met,” Kono sighed, shaking her head. “And if Freddie were here right now, he’d never stop mocking you.”

“I don’t care if he finds out,” Steve assured her, stepping back so that she could exit first. “He told me he needs more ammunition for his speech, anyway.”

“He’s spent half a decade with you, but he needs more information?” Kono asked incredulously. “I’m sorry, but I find that hard to believe.”

“At this point, I’m pretty sure his speech is going to last throughout the entire reception,” Steve sighed, nodding to one of the rental cars parked a few yards away as they came into the parking lot. “That one’s ours.”

“Great. Okay,” she sighed, shaking her head again when he placed her bags in the backseat and then hurried around to open the passenger-side door. “I mean – is this going to be the rest of my life? Your mother didn’t give you a cutoff date on the manners or anything?”

Steve smirked. “I do not remember her every saying there was a future time when I could stop being polite, no,” he retorted amusedly. “And, unless you want me to be forever haunted by the ghost of my mother for not showing respect to the woman I’m going to _marry_ , of all people, you might want to try to get used to it? Just a little? For the sake of my sanity?”

“Fine,” Kono huffed, climbing carefully into her seat. “But just so you know, you’re the only guy I have dated who actually did any of this, so you’ve got to give me some sort of adjustment period.”

“I will,” Steve promised, rounding the vehicle and sliding behind the wheel. “You want to head to the hotel, drop your things off?” he suggested as he backed out of the parking spot.

“Sure,” Kono agreed readily. “Just so you know, I had to hear a lecture from my mother about forty-five minutes long when she found out we were only getting one room. I just want you to know that. I want you to have the opportunity to roll your eyes as hard as I did the _second_ she opened her mouth.”

“How did she even find out?” Steve asked confusedly. “I thought you refused to tell your mother anything about your personal life.”

“I do,” Kono sighed. “My sisters, however, have not taken the same personal oaths. They tell Mom whatever they possibly can about Seth and me to get her off their backs. I’m going to have to stop sharing stuff with them, too, it seems.”

“You do realize how insane this all sounds, don’t you?” Steve asked curiously. “You know it’s not normal by any definition of the word?”

“Yes, I do,” Kono assured him.

“Okay. I was just checking.” Steve smiled over at her when she drew in an audible breath at the sight of the city around her. “So? What do you think? It as beautiful as you’d pictured it to be?”

“It’s more so,” she replied softly, her eyes still focused on something outside the window. “You’ve spent a lot of time here, yeah? Is it always so – well, amazing?”

“I don’t get to see the city as a whole that much,” Steve admitted. “I’m usually here for work.” He smiled as he met her eyes for a split second before directing his gaze back towards the road. “But, yes. It’s always like this. Even when I don’t get to appreciate it as much as I’d like.”

Kono nodded. “I figured. Let’s just go back to the hotel to freshen up, all right? I don’t want to miss out on anything while we’re here.”

“Okay,” Steve agreed readily. “Whatever you want, babe.”

They did just that, spending less than fifteen minutes in their hotel room after arriving. Kono changed into one of the warmer outfits she’d packed, well aware of the fact that Brussels was much colder in March than Honolulu. As soon as she slipped back into her jacket and shoes, though, she was headed for the door.

“So,” she began as they headed for the elevator. “Is there anywhere we need to go? Will my life be forever changed by anywhere you might take me?”

“I have no idea,” Steve answered honestly. “The person I usually come here with is Freddie. He doesn’t really appreciate nice things.”

“Case in point – he doesn’t appreciate you,” Kono teased, grinning up at him when he laughed quietly at that.

“There are a lot of things here that fall into that category, you know,” he continued, still shaking his head. “Lot of things are life-changing here.”

“Okay, then, top of the list?” Kono suggested.

Steve thought for a moment. . “You’d probably like Wittamer. It’s a chocolatier. Freddie always buys something from there to send home to his mother when we’re here and have the time to venture out.”

“Is Hart a Mama’s Boy?” Kono questioned suspiciously, raising an eyebrow.

“Yes,” Steve answered promptly. “Most Navy men are.”

“That is – well, that is just good information to have.” Kono leaned back against her headrest. “You know me, McGarrett,” she said in answer to his unasked question regarding the chocolatier. “I’m never one to turn down sugar. If I do, you should worry that I have a very misguided clone.”

Steve smirked. “I will make sure to do that, if and when the time comes,” he promised.

“Good.” She opened her eyes and turned to gaze at him for a moment. “My mother told me to visit a market in, uh, Grand Place? Do you know where that is?”

Steve nodded. “It’s pretty much the town square,” he explained. “And there are plenty of markets there. We could head over right now, if you want.”

“I would love nothing more. Right after we eat,” Kono clarified. “All I’ve had to eat in the past six hours was one of those little bags of airline peanuts, and those were not made to hold a grown woman over, so, please, feed me.”

Steve smirked as he followed her back out to the parking lot. “I know a place,” he assured her, his hand falling to the small of her back as he guided her to the rental car.

“You – what?” Kono asked, surprised. “You know a place? How do you already know a place, like, off the top of your head? You didn’t even have to think about it. What’s your secret?”

“Well, I do come here once a year, and this time, I came with you,” he pointed out with a smirk. “I know of about a dozen restaurants within the next mile that’ll meet your standards, because while I love you at your worst, I really don’t want to be mauled in the middle of the Belgian capital for letting you go without food for too long.”

 “You are a very smart man, and it is making me gladder and gladder that I decided to marry you,” she informed him as they climbed into the car.

He grinned at that. “Yeah. I figured.”

They ended up stopping for lunch at some bistro Kono couldn’t quite pronounce the name of. The food was as delicious as Steve had promised it would be, and she was a little overly full by the time they left the restaurant to make the short drive to the Grand Place.

As much as she hated to admit it, her mother had been right. Everything about the location Victoria had implored her to check out was amazing. She spent more time there than she should’ve.

“Did you know that there’s been a market there, on and off, for the past _nine hundred_ years?” Kono informed her fiancé as they headed off to find the car, as they’d had to park a ways away due to the position of the Grand Place.

“I did not,” Steve admitted. “So, congratulations. You made me learn something today. Thank you.”

Kono nodded, smirking. “Just making sure that what they repeated to us again and again in grade school holds true.” She glanced down at the pamphlet she’d grabbed from one of the vendors. “Did you know that Belgium’s actually been an independent country for less time than the U.S.?”

“Yup. 1830,” Steve informed her. “They separated from the Netherlands.”

Kono nodded. “That’s what it says here, too,” she joked, holding up the pamphlet. “Can we visit the palace next? It says here that it should still be open.”

“Sure, we can, but which one is it exactly that you want to visit?” Steve responded, arching an eyebrow.

“There’s more than one?” Kono asked, drawing in a deep breath when he nodded.  “I love this place,” she murmured. “Have I mentioned that I love this place?”

“Yeah, you have,” Steve assured her. “A few times now.”

“I love this place,” she repeated, eyes still wide.

“Yeah,” Steve chuckled quietly. “I got that.”

 -o-o-o-o-o-

“Did you _see_ that place?” Kono asked breathily, her hand finding Steve’s as they made their way back to the car after touring the Royal Palace that afternoon.

Steve smiled indulgently. “I did.”

“They started construction in 1783, didn’t finish until 1934, and I can see why. It’s huge!” She paused to thank him when he opened her door, then fell quiet until they were both in the car. “And all the art and…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “I could’ve spent years in there without getting bored, I swear.”

“It’s pretty great,” Steve agreed patiently as he turned the key in the ignition. “Did you want to check out any of the others?”

“I mean, _yes_ , but not today,” Kono sighed. “There’s an eleven-hour difference in time zones between here and home, and it’d probably be considered rude if I passed out thanks to jet lag in the middle of touring a royal residence.”

“It probably would be, yeah,” Steve agreed, smiling slightly as he backed out of their parking spot.

“I’m game to go the second they open tomorrow, though,” Kono offered hopefully.

Steve smiled, shaking his head. “Whatever you say, dear,” he agreed teasingly.

“What?” Kono replied suspiciously. “Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked again, laughing quietly.

“Nothing. I – okay,” Steve relented when she continued to stare curiously at him. “I’m just amazed that you’ve somehow managed to keep the fact that you’re a huge history nerd a secret for the past five and a half years.”

“Well, I mean, I didn’t go out of the way to keep it a secret,” Kono protested. “I’ve always said that I like cobblestone, haven’t I?”

“Yes,” Steve agreed. “You have. I just did not make the historical connection until you almost had a fit over a portrait of a long-dead king in there, that’s all.”

“Hey, buddy, you cannot mock me over this,” she fired back. “You know the name of every single gun used by both sides in World War I _and_ World War II. If anyone in this car in a history nerd, it’s you.”

“Yeah, but I learned about that to keep from failing while I was at Annapolis,” Steve pointed out. “You learned the history of that palace for _fun_.”

“Okay, so maybe I’m the bigger history nerd,” Kono admitted, sighing. “But there are worse things to be, you know. And, between your obsession with classic literature-”

“Raised by an English teacher,” Steve cut in.

“-and my random historical knowledge,” she continued as if he hadn’t said a word, “our kids won’t have any issues with their homework.” She paused. “Well, except for math. I still don’t get math.”

“Nobody gets math,” Steve sighed, turning into their hotel’s parking lot. “It was developed as a torture device and is now, for some reason, being taught to the masses.”

“You did work in Naval Intelligence for half a decade, right? And you studied IT and Engineering at the Academy,” Kono reminded him confusedly.

“Yeah, and I graduated with a four-point-oh GPA, but being good at something and enjoying it are not always the same thing,” Steve pointed out as he pulled carefully into a spot close to the front entrance and then silenced the engine.

“That’s-” Kono blinked. “Actually, that’s a very good point.”

“Thanks. I’ve been known to make them every once in a while,” Steve replied dryly, pushing open his car door and then circling around to her side of the vehicle to open hers after climbing from the vehicle.

“Oh!” Kono exclaimed after they’d exited the elevator and were headed down the hallway to their hotel room. “Did I tell you that Seth and Bridget are having another baby?”

“No, you didn’t,” Steve responded, his eyes widening with surprise. “When’d you find out about that?”

“A few days ago,” Kono replied, thanking him quietly when he opened the door and allowed her to step into the room before him. “She’s at the start of her second trimester. Thirteen weeks. They both think it will end up being another little girl. Then again, they thought Maia and Ruby were going to be boys, so who knows at this point?”

“So, they’re happy?” Steve checked.

“Over the moon,” Kono assured him. “They’ve always wanted a lot of kids – five, I think is what Bridge said – so this was all part of the plan. Granted, I don’t think they were planning on having another _so soon_ after Ruby, but.” She shrugged. “It is what it is.”

“And you’re happy for them, I’m guessing?” Steve questioned, smiling when she collapsed atop the covers of their king-sized bed.

“Also over the moon.” Kono grinned up at him. “You’re forgetting that I just have to be the fun aunt. My only job is to fill them full of sugar and then send them back to annoy my brother. It’s like every dream I have ever had just came true.”  

“You do realize that your brother’s going to get you back the second we have kids, don’t you?” Steve asked amusedly.

“Yes, but we still have a few years to prepare mentally for that,” Kono pointed out, patting the bed next to her. “Come. Lay down with me. I’m already shorter than you. You don’t need to loom over me all the time, you know.”

Steve sighed fondly as he did as he was told. “You’re so weird,” he informed her seriously, though the adoring smile on his face in that moment took away any sting the words might’ve otherwise inflicted.

“You love that I’m weird,” she returned.

“I do,” he agreed, grinning down at her. “I really, really do.”

“I want four, by the way,” she informed him after a few moments of idle silence.

“Four what?” Steve murmured, prying his eyes open.

“Kids,” she specified. “I want four kids.”

“Okay,” he said slowly. “Is there a reason you’re bringing this up now?” He shrugged when she raised an eyebrow at him. “Kono, you’ve always wanted four kids,” he pointed out. “You’ve never kept it a secret. I want four kids, too. We’ve actually had this discussion before.”

“Yeah, when we were _drunk_ ,” Kono scoffed amusedly. “Not _engaged_.”

“Okay,” Steve muttered humorously. “Well, you know, now we’re engaged, you want four kids, I want four kids, nothing’s changed, and all is right with the world. Can we please _sleep_ now?”

“You’re just onboard with this?” Kono asked suspiciously.

“I’ve always been onboard with this,” he reminded her tiredly. “I just said-”

“No questions, no concerns, nothing?” she continued on as if he’d never spoken. “You’re just – good with it?”

“Kono, these four kids I’m having? I’m having them with _you_. So, no, I don’t need to ask any follow-up questions about everything I’ve hoped for since the moment we met actually happening for me.” Steve tugged her closer and pressed a kiss to the side of her hair. “Having four kids with you sounds like the most awesome thing I can possibly imagine,” he muttered against her skin. “Now. Sleep.”

“Fine,” she grumbled in response. “But, just so you know, we are going to be discussing this further at a later date.”

She felt, rather than saw, the smile that came onto his face at that. “Whatever you say, dear,” he quipped just before they both slipped into slumber.

**Author's Note:**

> Edit: There were significant changes made to this story on January 2 - 3, 2019. Additional text was added; parts were removed. If there is any confusion for readers, this is likely what it stems from.


End file.
